Syracuse Basketball: Top takeaways as 'Cuse gets crushed on road by No. 3 Tennessee

The good news for Syracuse basketball is that the 'Cuse put up 70 points against No. 3 Tennessee, the nation's No. 2 defense allowing 54.7 points per game so far in the young 2024-25 season.

The bad news is that the Orange's porous defense allowed nearly 100 points to the undefeated Volunteers. The Southeastern Conference powerhouse (8-0), looking every bit the part of a national championship contender, rolled over Syracuse basketball, 96-70, in the second-annual SEC/ACC Challenge from Knoxville, Tenn., on Tuesday night.

In this non-conference collision of Orange-clad schools, the 'Cuse simply couldn't keep up with Tennessee, which moved to 5-3 overall versus Syracuse basketball and has won four straight in their all-time series.

This setback dropped the 'Cuse to 4-3 overall in 2024-25, and the Orange will next head to Notre Dame this Saturday afternoon to open up Atlantic Coast Conference competition.

My key takeaways as No. 3 Tennessee crushes Syracuse basketball.

•Undeniably, the 'Cuse missed junior guard J.J. Starling, who suffered a left-hand injury at practice on Monday and didn't suit up in this contest. The ESPN broadcast crew stated that the Orange is hoping Starling won't miss more than a month of action, and the 'Cuse needs him back as soon as possible. Starling is the team's leading scorer at close to 20 points per affair.

•Toward the end of Tuesday evening's game, redshirt sophomore guard/wing Chance Westry got into the contest. It was his first court time since transferring from Auburn to Syracuse basketball before his sophomore year. Since joining the Orange, Westry has been hampered by injuries and then an undisclosed illness before 2024-25 got underway, so it was lovely to see Westry play, even if only for a few minutes.

•As a unit, Syracuse basketball shot 49 percent from the field, 32 percent from deep and just 57 percent from the free-throw line. Tennessee hit on 54 percent from the field, 34 percent from beyond the arc and 67 percent from the charity stripe.

•The Volunteers led 40-26 in rebounds, 11-8 in turnovers forced, 19-10 in points off turnovers, 16-7 in second-chance points, 44-28 in paint points, 13-12 in fast-break points, 3-2 in blocks, 9-6 in steals and 16-10 in assists. The Orange, conversely, led 35-32 in bench points.

•Last Wednesday, when the 'Cuse conquered Cornell, 82-72, at the JMA Wireless Dome, freshmen Donnie Freeman and Elijah Moore carried the Orange. A similar theme transpired for Syracuse basketball in its loss at Tennessee.

•Moore, a shooting guard, tallied a team-high 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field and 3-of-6 from 3-point land. He also had three boards, two assists and a steal. Freeman, a power forward, notched 10 points, four rebounds and one dime.

•The only other 'Cuse player to produce double-figures in scoring was junior small forward Chris Bell, who had 12 points, five rebounds and three steals while going 5-of-10 from the field. Senior forward Jyare Davis chipped in nine points, five boards, one assist and one block.

•Prior to battling the Volunteers, the Orange had gone 4-2, with every game decided by 10 points or fewer. The 'Cuse fell to power-conference foes Texas and Texas Tech not too long ago by a combined nine points in Brooklyn, N.Y. While those outcomes were both losses, I was encouraged by the fight of Syracuse basketball at a neutral site versus squads that will contend for invites to the 2025 NCAA Tournament.

•Realistically, I didn't think that the Orange would march into the Thompson Boling Arena on Tuesday night and knock off one of the best teams in the country. Tennessee, entering that game, was averaging nearly 82 points per meeting while playing stingy defense. Then word comes on Tuesday afternoon that Starling wouldn't be available, and at that juncture, I just had hoped the 'Cuse could keep things close. Syracuse basketball did that for a while, finding itself within striking distance being down 10 points at halftime. But then the game started to unravel for the Orange, and the Volunteers ultimately proved too much for Syracuse basketball on both ends of the floor.